| Subject | Date Asked | Expert |
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| Insulating Cinderblocks in a Baserment | 11/30/2008 | Joe Turner |
Q: I recently finished out a basement but didn't frame out the cinderblocks that made the walk-out part ...
A: It is likely that at this point the perlite might not completely penetrate throughout the spaces in ...
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| Closing before completion of home | 11/23/2008 | Brian McElroy |
Q: Mr McElroy, thank you in advance for your help. My contractor has taken over 9 months to complete ...
A: You need to contact a construction lawyer. Chances are he will never finish the roof. Until the ...
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| pan deck construction | 11/22/2008 | Robert Cummings, P.E. |
Q: I'm trying to learn more about pan decks for a residential garage on a sloped lot. Is this a common ...
A: If I understand you right, you think perhaps the use of pan decking rather than another floor method ...
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| slight marble crack | 11/17/2008 | Jim Lyon |
Q: I have a tiled floor that is surrounded by the standard 4 inch wide marble surround. Lately, I've ...
A: There is a technique you can try to fill the crack. If it doesnt work, the piece could be replaced. ...
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| rock blasting and our well | 11/14/2008 | Robert Cummings, P.E. |
Q: We live in a rural area on 16 acres of a very rocky hillside. Our neighbours have blasted an ...
A: It would be highly unusual, if not impossible, for blasting to cause a well to "run dry" that was ...
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| fence poles in lava rock | 11/13/2008 | Robert Cummings, P.E. |
Q: only thing is that the property is in Hawaii and it is on the slope of a volcano so I need a easy ...
A: First of all I wonder why it takes 200 holes to fence a 1/2 acre lot with chain link. According to ...
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| faux stone over marble | 11/10/2008 | Jim Lyon |
Q: Can u put faux stone directly on marble, or do you have to take off the marble? this is on a ...
A: This should work without a problem, assuming that the marble is properly adhered to whatever is ...
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| Sump pit | 11/8/2008 | David Coil/C. R. Construction |
Q: I recently had a flood in my basement apartment. I had to remove the panel and take a look at what ...
A: Dave here...I hope you sent the question where you wanted it to go...a sump pit area is quite ...
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| weight bearing capacity of cement | 11/7/2008 | Brian McElroy |
Q: In Cancun Mexico, we are pouring a concrete pad on which to put an above ground swimming pool. Does ...
A: Yes, concrete has little strength without steel. Use wire mesh if the slab is 4" or less. If more ...
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| particle board cupboards | 11/2/2008 | Michael Hughes |
Q: Our contractor recently put particle board cupboards in our unheated cottage. We thought we were ...
A: I imagine the cabinets are MDF (medium density fiberboard). Most cabinets that are manufactured ( ...
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| Small Housing Development | 10/31/2008 | Lee Kilcup |
Q: Rural Area...500 to 750 sq.ft. houses...one to two occupants...25 houses in sud-division MyOn site ...
A: I am not a civil engineer but know a little about these things. If the soils are acceptable the ...
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| Roofing Shingles Reaeling | 10/27/2008 | David Coil/C. R. Construction |
Q: Hurricane IKE blew thru the Galveston-Houston area in Sept 08. Insurance adjusters are telling ...
A: If the seal tab pulled up...and separated from the shingle below...but in the process pulled part of ...
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| construction defects/2-10 warranty | 10/18/2008 | Joe Turner |
Q: We live in our nearly 5 yr. old custom built home. Since year #1 we have had residual problems ...
A: This is all too common. The expansive soils should have been stabilized by the builder. There are a ...
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| submittals | 10/18/2008 | Lee Kilcup |
Q: I am translating a building contract from English, and I can not find the meaning of "submittal" ...
A: Submittals are product information (data) that is collected and sent to the designer for approval to ...
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| rock/cement covering inside house | 10/14/2008 | Robert Cummings, P.E. |
Q: My house was built about 30 years ago on rock. There is a room inside my house that has cement ...
A: By cement I presume you mean concrete, although it really does not matter. The answer is yes, you ...
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| standard rate of work on concreting slab | 10/13/2008 | Lee Kilcup |
Q: Can i ask you if how many days can a 1 hectare land be concreted with how many men? thank you in ...
A: There are many variables: Is the slab on grade or suspended? What type of finish is there? Hard ...
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| How long after a project is finished can the contractor bill us? | 10/12/2008 | Jim Lyon |
Q: We had a addition completed to our home several months ago. The last invoice we paid was in March, ...
A: just following up and I wondered how things are going closing out your project? Thanks, Jim Hi I ...
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| Concrete slab cracks | 10/6/2008 | Joe Turner |
Q: My husband and I bought our home a little over 6 years ago and have been having several problems ...
A: A crack in the slab that has offset - one side higher than the other - is a defect and is subject to ...
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| trencing with boulder buster | 10/1/2008 | Robert Cummings, P.E. |
Q: Good day Mnr. Cummings the Boulder Buster works wonders with loose boulders,but i need to blast a ...
A: When you say 1.5 meter trench I assume you are talking about the depth, not the width because you ...
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| bathroom window | 9/28/2008 | Jim Lyon |
Q: I want to cover over the bath room window with the surround in the shower. but not take it out. It ...
A: Its funny, this is the first project I ever handled many years ago and I did a terrible job. Let me ...
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| Concrete Slab for Room Addition | 9/24/2008 | David Coil/C. R. Construction |
Q: We live in Albuquerque NM which has very low humidity. This past weekend we had a monolithic slab ...
A: It was poured too wet. Too much water causes more shrinkage. They are only surface fissures....and ...
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| bait and switch bid by plumber | 9/23/2008 | Jim Lyon |
Q: We hired a plumber to do the finish plumbing in an unfinished basement. It was all roughed in by the ...
A: First let me stress that I am not a lawyer and my opinion is strictly based on my very limited ...
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| concrete load capacity | 9/23/2008 | Lee Kilcup |
Q: Lee, I live in a 5 story 24 unit villa building built in 2003. It is made of steel and concrete, ...
A: Generally buildings are designed with a live load of 75 psf to 100 psf (pounds per square foot). ...
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| concrete porch | 9/21/2008 | Robert Cummings, P.E. |
Q: We would like to add a layer of concrete to an existing porch. The structure is in good condition. ...
A: Do not add new concrete unless the surface it is to bond to is clean concrete and treated with a ...
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| verbal contract | 9/21/2008 | Jim Lyon |
Q: I had a verbal contact to stain concrete floors for a friend. I was only charging $1500. She ...
A: I would suggest that you talk with someone you both trust to act as an impartial party and to try to ...
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| Retaining wall | 9/20/2008 | Robert Cummings, P.E. |
Q: My house is on a slope and was built 40 years ago. We moved in 10 years ago, and the concrete ...
A: It gives me a much better idea of what you are dealing with. Apparently, the retaining wall must ...
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| ledge blasting | 9/20/2008 | Robert Cummings, P.E. |
Q: is it possible to break up ledge using a high pressure water jet rather than explosive charges ?
A: That all depends on the hardness of the rock, the prevalence of fracturing, and the intensity of the ...
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| Explosive operations in Texas | 9/19/2008 | Brian McElroy |
Q: Sir, I work for small Environmental company that does ordnance remediation at Formerly Used Defense ...
A: You probably need to contact teh State of Texas in Austin. They have a Department that handles any ...
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| New Construction -Foundation wall collapse | 9/17/2008 | Joe Turner |
Q: I am the homeowner and GC of this project. New 10 inch poured concrete foundation wall in July 2008, ...
A: Your contractor is nuts or dishonest. He took the contract to build the wall to code - that is ...
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| Groundwater control | 9/12/2008 | Robert Cummings, P.E. |
Q: The site in Anacorets WA has a pit where shallow , seasonal, groundwater stands at a depth of ...
A: You may be misinterpreting the geotechnical recommendations. My guess is that the sheet piling was ...
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| Taking out window and boarding up hole | 9/8/2008 | Jim Lyon |
Q: I have a bathroom window that is approx. 6 feet wide and 5 feet tall. I would like to take the ...
A: This is not too hard of a project. I am making the assumption that you have a wood frame house with ...
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| concrete slab thickness | 9/4/2008 | Brian McElroy |
Q: I am canstucting a concrete slab to to provide a base for a Generator (weight 1373 kg). I plan to us ...
A: That should be fine. If it is a Propane or Natural Gas fired unit, make sure you leave at least 6 ...
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| drop ceilings | 9/3/2008 | Lee Kilcup |
Q: i have someone that wants me to bid a job. i am use to working by the hour. anytime i bid something ...
A: You may be able to make more money by bidding the work. I would carefully track my productivity ...
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| Billing after the job is completed | 9/3/2008 | Jim Lyon |
Q: We hired a contractor to do a new roof, siding, all new windows and to demolish our old front porch ...
A: These kinds of problems can be very upsetting and are easily avoided if the contractor takes the ...
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| method to dig and break rocks with excavator | 9/1/2008 | Robert Cummings, P.E. |
Q: I'm looking for some method to dig and break rocks with excavator.Do you have some knowledge of this ...
A: Depending on the size of the excacvator, there are attachments that will either break rocks directly ...
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| excavating and backfilling | 8/30/2008 | Robert Cummings, P.E. |
Q: I am contemplating putting an addition onto my home using a cargo shipping container (20'X8'X8.5'). ...
A: Most wet sand-silt-gravel mixes will weigh in the neighborhood of 135 pcf if compacted and 125 pcf ...
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| Pay basis for remodeling employees | 8/29/2008 | Lee Kilcup |
Q: I run a small remodeling business with 8 field employees and would like to find a way to tie ...
A: We provide our employees yearly bonus that equals about 25% of my profits. Since we started doing ...
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| Vibration Monitoring | 8/28/2008 | Robert Cummings, P.E. |
Q: I am an Environmental Officer working for construction company and responsible for vibration ...
A: I can see why you are confused about the vibration specification. From what you sent it looks like ...
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| Travertine on pool deck | 8/27/2008 | Joe Turner |
Q: We are considering installing 2" travertine in sand over a concrete pool deck. This is in NJ. Is ...
A: The only problem is the freeze/thaw cycle where you live (I am assuming northern NJ). If water gets ...
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| Retaining wall | 8/24/2008 | Robert Cummings, P.E. |
Q: My house is on a slope and was built 40 years ago. We moved in 10 years ago, and the concrete ...
A: I don't know that I have ever heard of a wooden retaining wall. I am familiar with soldier pile ...
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